Forums

Anything D2 Thread Topic

Welcome to the greatest semi-tracking thread in all of Hoops Dynasty Division II for teams in Crum World that reside in Oklahoma! I will update this thread on a weeklymonthly when I’m bored basis. Also, it should be noted that I consider grammar to be subjective and I tend to have a different understanding of it than most people.

Coach History

My pedigree for the position was absolutely outstanding. I (there are two of us, but I’ll refer to us as one entity) began my coaching career as an avid basketball fan that was highly skilled at giving direction to players through various televisions. (Note: No evidence of this advice can be shown without violating WhatifSports, FCC, and UN rules).

Upon seeing my immense talent and my high-high potential Wisconsin, Eau Claire (which I recently learned is not pronounced ew-claire, but I will continue to pronounce it as such) offered me the head basketball coach job. After a long negotiation process over if I was allowed to carry a mix drink on the sideline (they ruled that I could as long as the mixture was confirmed to be 'completely bad a*%') I took the position. As you all certainly know, I went on to be the best coach in the history of the program. I accrued a 64-46 NA record. At Ew-Claire, I coached such greats as Darrick Thomas, Bobby Shim, Kevin Durant, and many more! After I left Reinsel went on to take a group of players I had never seen and made them into a championship program. Of course, you’ll never see the “experts” give me my due credit for all of his and subsequent coach’s successful teams.

From there I decided to move to the big lights of Emporia, KS and took over the Emporia St program. Over my 15 seasons there I made it to 6 final fours and won 2 national championships (with the last three final fours actually being in the NT). In my final three years there, I made three straight final fours and won two national titles. Obviously, all the credit for these runs is due to amazing coaching. I was somehow able to turn lackluster talent into historic teams and those teams will forever be remembered as miracle coaching jobs. For instance, in those three years I was able to turn a pathetic point guard in Boyd Juhl into a decent player. When Juhl left his ratings were as follows:

Through my miraculous coaching skills I was able to turn this liability into the 14th pick in the draft and the national player of the year. Again the coach deserves all the credit here.

New Beginnings

Recently, I decided that I could no longer stand to live in an area like Kansas and didn’t enjoy the level of celebrity associated with being the hornets head coach. This is contrary to the commonly held belief that I left because of an alleged scandal involving me giving money to prized Mexican recruit Felix Valdez. (Felix if you’re reading this I got your messages I should have the goods soon.) So, I decided to make a complete lifestyle change and moved to Oklahoma to take over the Oklahoma Panhandle St job.

I arrived to see 4 players left over from the previous administration:

SR PG Kent Newsome Aka the only OK one- He’s the only decent player on the roster.

SR C Justin Parker-The most durable player I’ve ever had. In practice we utilize Parker’s face as a boxing dummy.

SR C Rodney Watkins-Who, according to our records, is still on the team.

Soph C Brian “He who must not be named” Escarega- There is usually one player I hate on every team and this team is no different. Chances of forced transfer are really high.

JR SG Anthony Chapman/JR SF James Blank- Don’t be fooled by the different names and abilities these two are actually one player. Anthony James Chapman is an improving machine that may one day be average in the glorious Heartland conference.

Soph PG John Sievers- Again we proved our skill by taking a player from conference rival Western Alabama. On the news, W. Alabama coach smokindavis said, “We didn’t want him (to leave)”. We didn’t catch the end of the quote but I’m pretty sure that’s what he meant.

FR PG Michael Cortes- My girlfriend said he was cute. The last player she said that for was player of the year candidate Jeffery Barnes. So, expect Michael “Jeffery Barnes” Cortes to dominate.

FR C Brian Pizzo- This was really a sympathy pick up. So, few coaches are willing to give players with the long hair receding hairline combo a chance, but I am proud to say that at OPSU we don’t discriminate.

FR C Allen Puckett- Younger brother from a different mother of Anthony James Chapman. All he does is improve.

RS FR PG David Green aka Blanket- He was well versed in high school in our systems. It’s always good to find players with experience in the traditional fastbreak offense. When asked how he fits in the offense Blanket had this to say, “I run pretty fast and occasionally pass.”

That’s all for now (and I will probably never write this much again). Also, if you’d like to make a donation towards some college/grad student’s beer money education please contact me via sitemail.

Other notable stats: 3pt shots: 20 attempts per game out of 55.6 shots (36% of total shots)
FT's: 22.8 attempts per game vs. 25.1 attempts for opponents
Points Per Shot: 1.28

Analysis

Losses:

-Newsome: He was the only worthy starter all year. Ideally he would have played SG last year, but no one else on the roster was ready to run the point.

-Parker/Watkins: They were both OK. Normally these guys would have played a bunch of minutes off the bench, but I didn’t like them starting. We are going to struggle to replace their rebounding.

-Barnes: An obvious example of amazing coaching. He scored over 15 times in one year under me than in three years playing for some D1 program.

Hopeful Losses:

-Escarcega: We are currently looking for a good middle school for Escarcega to take his exemplary 17 athleticism and 16 speed combo.

Potential Lineup:

-For certain:

-SG: Anthony James Chapman I: He will be the best player on the roster next year. I really like him and if he can continue to improve he could potentially get on an all-conference team or honorable mention.

-SF: Anthony James Chapman II: Improved a crazy amount last year. Still isn’t that good, but his inside outside scoring ability could make him the leading scorer.

-PF/C: Brian Pizzo: The Sophomore from the “Long Hair, Receding Hairline Combo Wish Foundation” seems to be forced into a starting role. This may be the weakest post team I’ve ever had. Pizzo will be better in the future, but he is nowhere near ready for big time competition. He will immediately provide some rebounding and a few post points.

-Question Marks:

-PG: John Sievers: A great scorer with absolutely no defensive ability. Played well in a backup role, but I think he would get rolled defensively as a starter. Western Alabama still wishes they could have him.

Or David Green aka Blanket: The best BH/Pass combo of any Frosh in the conference. I really like him and he is the PG of the future, but he may be a year away.

-PF/C: Allen Puckett: Puckett still isn’t good, but we don’t have anyone else. Biggest plus is he doesn’t need to attend study hall and appears to spend his extra time perfectly trimming his goatee.

*Slightly obvious that I hate a long offseason and don’t get to go home till 6.

-Missouri, St. Louis

-Last season: CT Champion and 2nd round of NT

-Lose: 3 (including National Defensive POY PG Robert Mallory)

-Analysis: Just like most years Missouri, St. Louis should be scazy (scary/crazy) good. His balanced classes make for a national competitor every season. I expect their Soph PF to become one of the best bigs in the GLV.

-Emporia St

-Last season: Regular Season Conf Champion and sweet 16 of NT

-Lose: 3 (including 1st team AA and National POY PG Jeffery Barnes)

-Analysis: Some school in Kansas with my favorite player Felix Valdez. Gtscott had a great recruiting class last year, but some coach left him with a class that will only include a below average Korean center. They’ll be back to top form in 2-3 seasons.

-Analysis: Will have 4 freshmen and 4 sophomores next season. It will probably be a rough season next year without 2 all-americans.

-Queens

-Last season: 2nd round of NT

-Lose: 3

-Analysis: The battle of ex-Eau Claire coaches. We also met in the championship game a couple seasons back. They’ll be senior-less next season, but they’re young talent is still so good that they could make a deep run. Reinsel is one of the best recruiters in D2.

-Metropolitan St

-Last season: 2nd round of PI

-Lose: 4

-Analysis: I don’t think we’ve ever played. Rowle is doing a great job with this program, but they lose a lot next year. The next two years after that could be final four type years. Their freshmen are ridiculous.

-W. Virginia St

-Last season: 1st round of NT

-Lose: 4

-Analysis: Got unlucky in the tournament. This is a better team than that result. Their returning players should create a really good team.

-CSU, Dominguez Hills

-Last season: Regular Season Conf Champion and 1st round of NT

-Lose: 3 (including 3rd team AA PF Anthony Carrasco)

-Analysis: We play them as part of the first California Collegiate Athletic Association V. Heartland Conference challenge. Hopefully this challenge really gets going I love the idea. Dominguez Hills will only have one senior, but the team should really grow as their 5 junior develop. I love their Fr PG.

-Augustana (SD)

-Last season: Regular Season Conf Champion and final four of PT

-Lose: 3

-Analysis: I think this is an up-and-coming program and if sanmoss sticks around it could turn in to a perennial NT team. Their Fr and Soph classes are very good.

-Analysis: They are always really good, but the loss of 5 seniors could make this team a little top heavy. He got 3 transfers/juco players last year, so, riles may go with that strategy to reenergize his team. If that’s the case they’ll be elite yet again.

-Analysis: starrider always has a good team, but they may be down for the next couple years. Of course, down still means a tournament appearance every year. I don’t know if I’ve played them or W. Virginia St. more years in a row, but I’ve probably played him 10 times

Jeffrey Saephan- After an illustrious junior college career in which he averaged 9.3 pts and 4.1 rebs in the competitive North Dakota junior college ranks he will be joining the aggies. He’s a combo forward and is competing for the starting PF spot. Ir Regardless of if he is a starter or not, he will likely play around 20 mins a game.

Steely (Bran)Don- The other junior college player to join OPSU brings the ability to score inside and look completely crazy. These are both characteristics that we desperately needed. Right now he leads against Jeffrey Saephan for the PF position, but without knowing potential it is too hard to determine who will start.

Albert Friedman-The little man (5’8’’ 153 lbs) is a great athlete, but still is far from being a finished project. He will have the second worst work ethic (the coach has the worst) on the team. As of now, he can only play the SG, but hopefully in a couple seasons he can develop into a combo guard.

Jeremy Coulson- Really I took him because I’m superstitious and Coulson means people of victory. He will eventually become a good player, but definitely needs time to become as fast as I want him to be. Hopefully, he will become a good combo forward.

1)Outside shooting – This is really the only great part of the team. There will be 6 guys on this team that can make threes. The hope is that the outside shooting will cover up some of the problems with this team. I expect this team to be the kind of team that can beat anyone, but also lose by 50 to anyone.

2)Anthony James Chapman- Under his pseudonyms Anthony Chapman and James Blank should both be dynamic scorers and could take over a couple games through the season.

3)Guard play- They are not great, but it looks like a group that won’t struggle to produce 10 assist in a game.

4) No Brian Escarcega-He is leaving/being forced out by us. I absolutely hated this kid and I think his new D3 school (Transylvania) will hate him too when they see that he's almost completely maxed out.

Weaknesses-

1)The frontcourt- This is the worst frontcourt I have ever had (D3 included). This is not a good rebounding team and will not be good at scoring in the post.

2)Familiarity with the system- In the past two seasons I’ve brought in 13 players. That means a lot of these players have low IQ’s. This is one reason (along with potential) that I expect this team to be among the most improved in D2 by years end.

1)No more predictions- 10 wins? Worst prediction ever. Chances look like we’ll be closer to 5. Maybe I’ll start with some easier predictions. New prediction: My players will get better.

2)IQ matters- Surprisingly, when no one starts the season with better than a B in your offense the team fails to reach their potential.

3)The future is bright- Right now starting 3 2nd year players (PG David Green RS Fr., C Allen Puckett Soph., and C Brian Pizzo Soph.) and 2 (Green and Puckett) are going to end up being really good. Also, have 3 freshmen that should all be at worst solid starters by their JR year. This team has improved more than any other in the conference.

Well, we continue to struggle. So, to get my mind off of things I'm deciding to share my simple rating system. Like many coaches, I work off of a formula and based on what range a player falls into I put them into a category. The five categories are:
1) Role Player
2) Quality Backup
3) Capable Starter
4) Good
5) Star
These were the categories for my players at the beginning of my 1st championship season:
PG)Boyd Juhl (Soph) Good
Charles Porter (Jr) Good
Jeffery Barnes (Fr) Quality Backup
Richard Profitt (Soph) Quality Backup
SG)Anthony Davis (Fr) Role Player
SF) Robert Lewis (Sr) Capable Starter
Joseph Kirsch (Jr) Good
PF)Donald Lloyd (Sr) Good
Jason Derenthal (Fr) Role Player
Michael Hunter (Fr) Role Player
C)Adam Day (Soph) Role Player
Richard Mahon (Jr) Capable Starter
Note: Boyd Juhl and Donald Lloyd would both be stars by the end of the season
Final Breakdown: 1)4 2)2 3)2 4)4 5)0
Total Team Pts: 30
This was the worst of my three final four teams, but it was my favorite because 6, and by the end of the season 7, guys could dominate on any given night. This would be my example team that I am trying to eventually recreate. By far my most versatile team
Now for my current team
PG)John Sievers (Jr) Quality Backup
Michael Cortes (Soph) Quality Backup
David Green (Fr) Quality Backup
SG)Anthony Chapman (Sr) Good
Albert Friedman (Fr) Role Player
SF)James Blank (Sr) Capable Starter
PF)Jeffrey Saephan (Jr) Role Player
Brandon Steely (Jr) Role Player
John Bullard (Fr) Role Player
Jeremy Coulson (Fr) Role Player
C)Brian Pizzo (Soph) Role Player
Allen Puckett (Soph) Quality Backup
Final Breakdown:1)6 2)4 3)1 4)1 5) 0
Total Team Pts: 21
I've noticed that a quality team (NT worthy) usually starts the season with 25+ total team points. Obviously I have a lot of work to do to get there. Next season could be another struggle as I lose my top two players.
I doubt anyone will find this or any of my other ramblings interesting, but it certainly helps me procrastinate getting things done and that's really the only purpose here.

Other notable stats: 3 Pt shots: 18.04 attempts per game out of 56.15 shots (32% of total shots)

FT’s: 21.6 attempts per game vs. 26.6 attempts for opponents

Points Per Shot: 1.31

Analysis

Losses:

-SG/SF: Anthony James Chapman: The clone tandem were far and away our two best players. The SG will be easier to replace than the SF.

-Earl: Long time OPSU supporter is not renewing his season tickets. Earl hasn’t missed a home game in over 20 years. This recent development puts the number of fans renewing their season tickets at 10. OPSU administration is anxious to see if Michael Cortes’ mom will renew her tickets to keep the number in the double digits.

Potential Lineup:

-For certain:

-PG/SG David Green aka Blanket: Next year doesn’t look too promising, but he should be a bright spot. He must improve on his 39% shooting. I’ve never had a lead PG like Blanket. All of my other star guards have been exceptionally athletic or fast. Blanket is neither, but is very skilled.

-SF Steely (Bran)Don: The Juco player will be a solid scoring threat. As far as everything else goes he’s pretty poor. That said he is the most ready to play SF.

-PF/C Allen Puckett: Puckett decided to not improve at all on the last day of improvement to stay put at 99 pts of improvement. So, right now I hate him, but he will likely be second to only Blanket as far as talent goes.

-PF/C Brian Pizzo: He worked on his defense this season. It’s really pretty simple, Pizzo needs to stand between his man and the basket because no one will look in the direction of Pizzo’s hairline.

-Question Marks:

-PG/SG John Sievers: He can shoot, but can’t play defense to save his life. The best player of the question mark group, but such a liability on defense.

Or Michael Cortes: The most unspectacular player ever. May need to start some, but I’m still a little jealous of him because my girlfriend found him attractive.

Or Albert Friedman: The youngest and worst IQ’s of the group. Will play more and more as the season goes on. That is if he doesn’t leave OPSU to play in an under 6 foot league.

-Analysis: Look for the emergence of freshmen guards Vaughn Johnson and Vincent Luera. May be a little behind this season’s squad, but should still advance in the tourney. I still stand little to no chance.

-Analysis: If I had to guess this should be a sweet 16 type of team. They will be back to top tier status, but have the problem that next season will have more senior laden top teams in D2 than I can ever remember seeing. The following year when they’ll have 9 Jr’s and Sr’s they should be a final four type of team.

-Cal. St. Poly

-Last season: 1st round of PI

-Lose: 3

-Last meeting: Lost 66-52 @ Cal. St. Poly

-Analysis: This is another team that is probably another season away from hitting their stride. The fact that this game is at home makes me somewhat optimistic.

-Analysis: This is their year to shine. Sadly, it seems like most of the top tier has been gearing up for next season, so, a team that should ordinarily contend for a final four may struggle to do so. Regardless, they are unlikely to struggle with my team.

-W. Virginia St

-Last season: 1st round of NT

-Lose: 2 (1 fifth year)

-Last meeting: Lost 90-79 @ home

-Analysis: The sophomore class is very talented and eers’ team should get better as that group continues to develop.

-Cal. Davis

-Last season: No postseason

-Lose: 3

-Last meeting: I think we played a couple seasons back. I want to say I won, but not positive.

-Analysis: We play them as part of the first California Collegiate Athletic Association V. Heartland Conference challenge. This should be a good game. Cal. Davis scares me because with 6 seniors they are sure to have a big IQ advantage.

-Augustana (SD)

-Last season: 2nd round of PI

-Lose: 3

-Last meeting: 113-106 @ Augustana

-Analysis: I still think that this program (assuming sanmoss sticks around) will be a perennial NT team. That said they are still one more season away. This should be a pretty even matchup at home.

-Texas A&M University, Kingsville

-Last season: Regular Season Conf Champion and 1st round of NT

-Lose: 3

-Last meeting: Lost 97-90 @ home

-Analysis: This team should be back next season with 8 upperclassmen. On the road, I probably have a 10-15% chance of victory.

-Analysis: I expected to get a couple of w’s in the non-con last year, but I did not think I’d beat a team of this caliber. A similar result next season shouldn’t be expected. Bemidji is likely to be a team that will advance in the tourney.

-Led by 1st team AA Fred Montgomery. This team beat Queens by 7 in the sweet 16 and I wouldn’t be surprised to see that matchup again next season, but in the last instead of the 2nd weekend.

N. Alabama

-Elite 8, RPI 8, lose 2

-Sophomore Nathan Brooks has been tremendous during his two seasons in Florence, but I expect him to become one of the best big men in D2 by the end of the season.

Queens

-Sweet 16, RPI 4, lose 0

-Feature 1st team AA Michael Rethman. I always used to think that reinsel (Queens), angmar (Wilmington), and alblack (Drury) were the best D2 coaches yet to win a championship in this world. Now with Wilmington winning the championship there are only two left.

Salem International

-National runner-up, RPI 7, lose 1

-Two straight championship game appearances and I wouldn’t be surprised to see three. Bryhull built this program , but mykids and mchristman have done a good job of keeping up the high recruiting level.

Shepherd

-Sweet 16, RPI 1, lose 1

-This is another top program that has geared up for next season. The WVIAC south with Shepherd and Salem International should be an interesting race.

Washburn

-2nd round of NT, RPI 9, lose 1

-Sad to hear that dcomp is about to retire from this world. Next year should be one of his best teams.

Other teams of interest

Mercy

-No postseason, RPI 95, lose 1

-Currently a simAI team, but will be interesting to see if they can make the tournament. They return 9 Sr’s.

St. Edward’s

-1st round of NT, RPI 48, lose 0

-This is a team that could become a contender by the end of the year. They are my surprise pick.